Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - BRONCOS SQUAD SHOW: Denver Preparing for a GAUNTLET to End Regular Season

Episode Date: December 9, 2025

The Denver Broncos head into the final four games of the NFL regular season with a 11-2 record and atop the AFC. However, the Broncos have a GAUNTLET of a schedule for the remaining four games in the regular season. With games against the Green Bay Packers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers remaining the Broncos will be tested prior to the start of the playoffs. Join Aniello Piro, Cody Roark, Nick Ferguson, Sayre Bedinger on today's Locked On Broncos Squad Show as they take a look the home stretch of games for Denver. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Aura Frames For a limited time, save on the perfect gift by visiting https://AuraFrames.com to get $35 off Aura’s best-selling Carver Mat frames - named #1 by Wirecutter - by using promo code LOCKEDON at checkout. FanDuel If you want to be right in the middle of the action this season, visit FanDuel.com and place your NFL live bets all season long. PrizePicks Download the PrizePicks app today and use code LOCKEDONNFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup. Click Here: https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LO... Gametime Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime. Mint Mobile Turn your expensive wireless present into a huge wireless savings future by switching to Mint. Shop Mint Unlimited Plans at http://MINTMOBILE.com/LOCKEDONNFL. Disclaimer: Limited time offer. Upfront payment of: $45 for 3-mo., $90 for 6-mo., or $180 for 12-mo. plan required ($15/mo. equivalent). Taxes & fees Initial plan term only. 35GB may slow when network is busy. Capable device required. Availability, speed, & coverage varies. See mintmobile.com. Zocdoc Stop putting off your doctor’s appointments and get the care you need. Go to Zocdoc.com/lockedonnfl to find and instantly book a top-rated doctor today. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

I'm Anilo Piro and Broncos country, we have reached the home stretch of the regular season, and the Denver Broncos got themselves a goblin. I'm Cody Roark, and I believe that the Denver Broncos are ready for the test ahead. I'm Sarah Bedenger. Are we getting a Super Bowl preview this weekend in the Mile High City? I'm Nick Ferguson, and I want some more damn Marvin Mims. I love it. All that and more on today's Locktown Broncos squad show. Let's get into it, fellas. From the South stands, it's the Broncos squad.

Everything Denver Broncos every week. Covering all the big hits and game-changing plays from the Mile High City, the way only the Locked-on podcast network can. Hear up and squad up. The Broncos Squad show starts now. It is your Locked-on Broncos squad show right here on your Locked-on Broncos YouTube channel as well as the Locked-on Broncos audio feed. to all of you out there in Broncos country for supporting the program. And if you're watching on

YouTube, hit that like button, smash that subscribe button really helps us out. And again, this is the Lockdown Bronco Squad Show on the number one podcast network in the world, the Locked On Podcast Network. Hope everyone is doing well out there. And today's episode is brought to you by our friends over at Fanduel. If you want to be right in the middle of the action this season, just visit Fanduel.com and place your NFL live bets all season long. More from our friends over at Fanduah in just a little bit. But fellas, I'm excited, I'm excited to do every show with you guys. I think we always have good conversation, good back and forth.

But I'm especially excited to kind of flip the page and look towards this final four-game stretch of the Denver Broncos season. I mean, here it is. I mean, we got four regular season games left. And then hopefully a handful of playoff games and a Super Bowl game moving forward for this Broncos team. But I think we're all kind of in agreement. Like the Broncos took care of business, right?

Check their boxes, got the win against the Raiders. and Cody now it's time for this gotlet of a final four game stretch to take place, starting with Green Bay coming up this weekend. Yeah, it's a big game. It's the number one team in the AFC right now in the standings against the number one team in the NFC standings, Denver versus Green Bay. Like this is going to be a fun matchup, and certainly I think it is going to be a big test this week. I think you can maybe make the argument.

I'm sure we'll get into the semantics of it later that this could probably be the biggest test the Broncos face in the rest of the regular season remaining schedule. I think that's up for debate. and certainly we're going to discuss that. But man, what better way than to have a big game where you get Tony Romo, unfortunately, my wife hates. And he too, Tony Roma has. I'm over Tony Romo.

I had to listen to him against the Colts and the Chiefs was my first time in a couple of years. Man, this guy stinks. He doesn't have the same juice he had his first year. But anyways, back to the regular topic. You said turn the page. And look, this isn't a Metallica cover, my friend. But the Broncos next chapter is against the Packers. Yeah, no, and I'm excited for this matchup.

And like you said, we'll kind of dive into. to the schedule as a whole. And I kind of think this is maybe the most difficult matchup for the Broncos remaining. But, Sarah, you said potential Super Bowl preview. Talk to me about that. Absolutely. Yeah, the Green Bay Packers are the best team in the NFC, in my opinion. I know we talk a lot about the L.A. Rams, but I just feel like over the course of the

rest of this season, we are going to see the cream rise to the top. Now, hopefully it starts after this weekend, or at least if it's a hard fought battle, the Broncos come out on top. I believe the Packers have the best combination of coaching, playmakers, pass rush. I just think they're going to get it done. I know that obviously the Rams, they have a case to be made, but I do think this is the best team left on the Broncos schedule. And I feel like this will be that opportunity for them to go out there

and prove to maybe anybody that's still doubting the Broncos. If they are, I mean, I know they're two and a half point underdogs in this game. It's a chance to prove that, hey, we can go out there and win big games with, what are they got? three of their next four at home. And I guess I suppose that means five of their next seven games will be played at home because they'll be playing at Kansas City and then at Santa Clara there in February. Yeah, Cody, Nick and myself will be spending a lot of time together out there

at Empower Field over the next month and a half or so. And let let's, you brought up something. And I was doing a show at the radio station that I worked for here in town. And we were kind of, I was talking with a co-host about like, you know, this Packers game and whatnot. Nick, are you surprised? that the odds makers in Vegas have the Green Bay Packers as a road favorite coming into this game,

considering how good Denver's been this season in particular at home, the odds makers are telling us they like the Packers to win this game. How do you feel about that? No, I'm not surprised based on how the Packers have played as of late. We all watch the Packers play against the Philadelphia Eagles, and that game wasn't, they didn't scorch the earth as far as scoring is concerned. But as of late, they've been turned. turning things around. They're getting guys healthy.

Kristen Watson had an explosive last week. And I think that's why people are looking at this Green Bay team saying, okay, well, they can go into Denver and they can actually compete because here's one thing they can do well that the Denver Broncos have not done well all season long. They did well against the Raiders. And that's run the ball with Josh Jacobs, who, I mean, has been the Broncos kryptonite from a defensive standpoint. So they're looking at love playing his best football right now.

and you look at where the Packers are as far as the NFC is concerned. They're getting healthy. They're getting stronger. And then you look at the play calling from Matt LaFleurreveloor, opposed to Sean Payton. So that's why the Packers have an advantage. And they are their way team. I thought it was a little confounding. And look, I was the guy, you know, along with Nick to a certain extent, like Cody

and Sarah, I think felt a lot better about that Raiders. I personally did. Like I thought it was a good wit, but I didn't, you know, over the moon about it. not saying that you guys did, but like I just felt a little bit differently about the win itself. But when I saw the Broncos as a home underdog, and again, I throw the odds out there, not necessarily for betting, you know, analysis or anything like that, but like these Vegas odds makers know what they're doing, right? And I trust their opinion with respect to how games, you know, look, you know, before they're played and whatnot. I'm a bit surprised, Cody.

I just think this Broncos team has been so dominant at home. And look, it's two and a half, so it's a field goal spread. It's not like they're saying the Packers are a seven point favorite in this game. But I feel a lot better about Denver's chances against any team going back to the conversation we had a couple weeks ago at home versus on the road. I'm a little surprised. I'm a little surprised. I mean, Vegas wasn't built by winners. They're built on losers, right? That's the number one thing. So that's how I feel about it. Look, I think this is just a great test. And obviously, these teams have some familiarity with each other. The Green Bay Packers a couple years ago came to training camp for a training camp practice. And a lot of these same guys, you have a lot of

the same carryover offensively, defensively, for the most part. Some new faces, the most notable probably be Mikea Parsons in this conversation. But I just think that from a personnel standpoint, I feel like it's going to be a fun test. I do think that Denver matches up well, but I also think that the Packers match up well against the Broncos. So it's just one of those ones like, where is it going to go? Because the Packers have all these different receivers. Certainly, yes, they have Josh Jacobs in the ground game there. Denver, I'm curious to see if they come out to shut that.

down the run. I think obviously the Packers losing Tucker Kraft for the year. That was a major blow. Because if coming into this game, Tucker Kraft was healthy, I would have been like, this is the number one like red alert. You got to figure out how to stop this dang guy because I do, I did think he was playing as the best tight end in the league this year before his ACL. So I think this could go either way. I think we're going to be treated to a very fun game. And the best part about it, gents, it's going to be 55 degrees at kickoff. I'm excited about that mid-December. Come on, man. Yeah, you know, that's the beauty of this kind of bipolar weather we get it. sometimes here in the Mile High City is, you know, it'll be snowy and cold one day and 55 degrees for an NFL Sunday, as it should be coming up this weekend. For context here, the Packers are currently writing a four-game win streak after dropping two in a row.

They lost to the Panthers and the Eagles. They lost the Eagles 10 to 7. That was an ugly, ugly game. Something's wrong with the Eagles as well. I know they're an NFC team, but, you know, you thought the Broncos might get a little help last night. If the Eagles win that game against the Chargers, that's not the case. But that's beyond the point here. but there are four wins at the Giants took care of business there, 27-20,

and then a blowout win against the Vikings 23 to 6, and then back-to-back quality wins over division rivals and the Detroit Lions on the road, 31 to 24, and of course on Sunday, an epic win at home against the Chicago Bears, 28 to 21. So that's kind of the recent game sample size for this Green Bay Packers team. And Sarah, I want to go back to you here, you know, with your Super Bowl kind of preview dynamic.

It seems like the Packers are settled into a bit of a groove, these last four weeks. And I'm curious how Denver's defense is going to respond to the challenge. Yeah, it's going to be huge for the Broncos defense to make adjustments in game. We know Matt LaFleur. He can play the chess game as well as anybody in the league and the Packers. They are not afraid to attack deep downfield and they've got the players to do it. I mean, we talked about Christian Watson, but they've also got Romeo Dobbs. They just got Jaden Reed back, who was really good. I mean, Bo Melton is making plays for these guys for crying out loud. And they have their fans are wondering, why is Matthew Golden not getting involved?

So there's a ton of playmakers on this offense. And that's the thing that I think is going to make this such an interesting matchup is how do the Broncos fare when the Packers attack downfield? Because they're not afraid to do that against anybody. And the Broncos have been susceptible in that way. So we need to see, you know, Riley Moss, Jada Barron, Pat Sertan, this entire secondary for the Denver Broncos, the safety's got to be in position. They've got to be communicating out there because what we, you know, have seen since Tucker Kraft went down is the Packers have not really been able to figure out any sort of way to supplement that. They've had guys like Luke Musgrave, he can do some things, but he's not the same in any way, shape, or form.

So I think you can, these guys can be got, right? But it's a matter of shutting down that deep ball and making sure that you don't give up those field flipping plays. Yeah, no, I'm with you. And Nick, I think you can speak to this as well, just with your background, having played for the Broncos and throughout the course of the NFL, you know, losing Tucker Kraft, I think is a major blow, as Sarah alluded to for this Packers team. But you know, you've got Pat Sertan back there. So whatever deep balls are going to try to run, you feel pretty confident about that. Also, I believe I'm getting this correct.

I read it yesterday. Would you guys believe me that Pat Sertan has one fewer penalty on the year than that of Riley Moss? Riley Moss has nine penalties on the year to Pat Sertan's eight. And the reason I say that is because I feel like Riley Moss gets a lot of criticism from Broncos country. But when you stack it up with, you know, the reigning, defending defensive player of the year, it doesn't look that bad. Talk to me about this defensive game plan here, Nick. Yeah, it always looks different when you're looking at Riley Moss opposed to the defensive player of the year. And you can say that maybe we kind of look at PS2 in a different way. And rightfully so.

I mean, he does a great job. And when we look at Riley Moss is usually those past interference type of plays that he's been known for, been called for this season. So the game plan this week is going to have to be a little different than it was. last week because Matt LaFleur is willing to take shots down the field. Now, he's going to use his run game to establish the passing game, which is a little different from what Sean Payton does because Sean uses the past game to set up the passing game, right? So it's going to look a little different, but every guy is going to have to be on their

peas and cues. And known as though this is a big game for both of these teams, it is going to be wow. And like Sarah said, we've seen issues with. the Broncos secondary in a place where it was kind of quiet and reliant stadium where they could not get on the same page and they gave up touchdowns. Trust me, this is not the offense. You want to give up explosive plays too because I don't know if the Broncos' offense can match them point for point.

I really don't think so. And then once again, defensively for the Green Bay Packers, you have Michael Parsons. And if I'm Jeff Halfley, who was the guy who I worked under when I was in San Francisco, I know exactly where I would put Michael Parson right over Mike McGlitchie, right? Because to me, that's where you want to put him. That's where you're going to maximize the pressure rate and get Bo out the pocket. And hopefully your linebackers can make, you know, Bo pay. But this is going to be a really interesting game to see how Vance Joseph actually calls it

with so many different players, skill players that is, for the Green Bay Packers. Yeah, Michael Parsons is a guy that single-handedly can wreck a game plan for, you know, the Broncos offense in this matchup. So I'm curious to see how the Broncos respond. I think the good point to that is Bo tends to play better at times when he's scrambling outside of the pocket, making those impromptu throws. So that actually might, I'm not saying Michael Parsons is going to play to Bo Nix's strengths, but the point is like you feel good about Bo Nix's ability to go out there and

improvise, you know, need be if he's getting that pass rush smoldering him time and time again. And Cody, I agree with Nick with respect to like, I don't, like, if the Packers' offense is the best version of itself, I mean, I know we saw the Broncos put up points against the Cowboys, the Bengals, throughout the course of this season. But I think if the Broncos are going to win this game, it's going to be because of their defense. And I think disrupting Jordan Love and preventing him from settling into a groove

will be a big factor in helping the Broncos win this game. Yeah, look, the Packers' offense can be explosive at any time. But still, once again, coming into this season or matchup early on in week 8, the Dallas Cowboys had the second best offense, second high-scoring offense in the NFL coming into that game. And they had a really good game plan against CD Lamb, George Pickings. They lost PS2 in that game, and it still really didn't matter. Now, it helps near offense is able to put up points the way that Denver did against that defense.

Though, I would say this will be a tougher defense that Bo Nicks and the offense are going to be facing this week. I'd say even in comparison to the Raiders, in comparison to even the Cowboys at that time. So I'm very curiously how it bounces. Like to your point about Micah Parsons and obviously Bo Nicks being mobile and what we've seen here, if I'm the defensive coordinator, wherever I'm lining Micah Parsons up, the backside, I'm having that guy stab up field to try to force Bo to roll to his right, to roll to Michael Parsons side because that kind of plays into that. So I'll see how, you know, the chess match is played here between Sean Payton and the Packers.

I think you have to come out here once again, establish the run. And I imagine that you're going to probably take a similar approach to what you did against the Raiders here, right? What do they do against Max Crosby? Well, you know what we're going to do? We're going to go 12 personnel. We're going to go 22 personnel at times. okay, Mercedes Lewis is going to line up at fullback. We're going to move him, you know, pre-snap.

We're going to motion him to the end line next to Mike McGlinchie. All right, freight crumbs in reporting is eligible. We're going to also move him there. And then we're just going to have the numbers advantage. Try to get an overload, so to speak. That is what I think we will see for them to try to emphasize the run game. Because I agree, like if you do give up some explosive plays, the way the Broncos defense has as of late.

And a lot of that has been miscommunication, especially in their match coverage looks at they're running here. This is not a game you want to fall behind. 10-0-13-0 against this Packers team. No, I completely agree with you. And look, I think that home field advantage will be as good as ever, right? Broncos country. Last year, got a little bit of the appetizer, getting back in the playoffs.

But now this is a season that is loaded with championship expectations. So I'm expecting the water bottles to be shaken when you and I are sitting in the press box, Cody. And I think in Powerfield is going to be absolutely electric. So, okay, let's hit our first break. When we come back, let's continue along with the conversation, kind of keys to victory for this Broncos game. up against the Green Bay Packers.

And how may Sean Payton dive into his bag of tricks? Is there a receiver we might see more of? We'll break that down next right here on your locked on Broncos squad show. Back in just a moment, folks. All right, you guys, let me tell you about our friends over at Fanduel here real quick. And like we said, the Broncos are a home underdog in this game. So if you like the Broncos in this game, you're going to get a pretty good price with our friends over at Fanduel. And the NFL Sundays, they move fast.

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Broncos sent you. All right, well, come on back into your locked on Broncos squad show AP, Cody Rourke, Sarah Bedinger, Nick Ferguson, getting ready for this gauntlet of a home stretch of games for the Denver Broncos as the playoffs are rapidly approaching. I mean, Christmas is in like two weeks, which is just crazy. Like, I know it was just Thanksgiving, but like it just feels like the days go so fast, especially when your team's into it, right? It's a little different when they're kind of down and out.

But, you know, every day it's something new with the Broncos, monitoring the injury report. What are they going to do in this game? What's happening with the Patriots, right? All of these things are factors playing into this Broncos season right now. But let's continue along with the conversation with respect to this Packers game, guys. And Sean Peyton held his Monday afternoon slash morning conference call yesterday with the media. And one of the things that we kind of heard from Sean Payton is wanting to unlock Marvin Mims a little bit more in this game. And really just moving forward throughout the course of the season.

Nick, I'll start with you. because I know you've been a big proponent of Marvin Mims and what he can add to this offense. I believe he only had one target in that game against the Raiders. So, you know, he made a dynamic play as a punt returner, but kind of non-existent to a certain extent in the offense with Bo Nix on the field. And I remember you talked about this on Sunday show as well. Do we see Sean Payton have some of those play calls that maybe he's saved for a game like this against Green Bay, including that of Marvin Mims?

You know what? I continue to hear that that maybe the. Sean Payton is holding back with his play calling because he was waiting for the team to get to the playoffs. I'm going to say miss me with that because any offensive coordinator is going to use all his good stuff to make sure everyone is prepared when they're facing them the next time. And that's what you do. You set plays up. And the idea of saying, okay, well, we got together with our coaching staff. And after we left the meeting, we felt as though this was the time to unlock Marvin Mims.

Well, why in the hell was he in the garage where the top placed on it? And he was not used before. That's my biggest question because we see every time this kid gets the ball in his hands on the punt return, what he can do with space. And I think maybe that's translated for Coach Payton. Okay, well, he does a great job in space. So let's give him an orbit play. Let's give him someone of a makeshift reverse.

Let's throw him a screen pass. That sounds great. But Marvin Mims is the type of player. that needs to go vertical. You know, like take a Talladega nights. I want to go fast. Let him go fast. Why not?

There's so many things that you can do with him, even if you're not throwing him the ball as the number one receiver in the progression, use him as a decoy so you can work the short intermediate routes. We're not really seeing that. And that's a problem for the Broncos. And we haven't really got into this. But since we're talking about Marvin, ma'am, I'm just going to throw the F out there.

When we look at the Broncos wide receivers, it's about separating down the field. We're not seeing them separate down the field. This is why Bow has been criticized a lot for bailing on plays. That's why he has the bail on, get on the perimeter, because he's looking for someone to uncover. We've seen Cortland Sutton in the Kansas City game uncover. We've seen Pat Bryant against the commanders uncover, but that is an ongoing problem. And if you guys were to tell me, based on what Sean Payton said, that all of a sudden, sudden instead of going to Troy Franklin or Corlin Sutton,

now we're going to see a massive amount of target for Marvin Mims. I mean, come on, man. No, I think it's well taken what you say. And look, I think this isn't a bigger conversation because they're winning. Like if the Broncos lose on Sunday or if they've lost a couple of these games, I think one of the major talking points is going to be, why isn't Marvin Mims more involved in this offense? And for reference, last season, and I know we still got a few games to go here,

Marvin Mims finished with 39 receptions, 503 receiving yards, and six touchdowns. So far this year, and 11 games played, he's got 25 receptions, essentially half of the receiving yards with 247, and one touchdown, and I believe that as a receiver, not including their punt return.

I'm not sure based on how that's broken down in front of me in the screen, but point being, Marvin Mims has not been as involved in this offense as he was a year ago, right? And I understand the Broncos are better this year, despite that. But it just seems like if we want to take this Broncos, his offense up a notch. Marvin Mims is the guy that can help them do that. That speedster and Cody, I see on your whiteboard there, you had the post wheel round, you know, whether it's, you know,

Sean Payton playing with his food a little bit and, you know, wanted to save some things for the playoffs. I'm not so sure. But I think we all agree. We want to see some more Marvin Mims. Yeah, I think we all do too. And look, I'll be honest. I've talked to Broncos receivers. I've asked them questions point blank. Like, what's up? How come you guys aren't able to attack deep quite a bit? And look, I already know the answer to it because we see it every week on film. they're not getting a lot of man coverage looks from defense. There's times we're going to see an occasional, you know, zero blitz or six man rush and everyone's just,

you know, you might get a cover one here or there. But they have what, you know, obviously when Bo gets to the line of scrimmage, they may have a play call. Like Sean even said in his conference call to us on Monday, so we had a lot of deep shot plays called,

but we couldn't go to it because the fact that they're just taking away the deep stuff. They're playing deep, you know, so I think there's, you know, the Madden players of the world and the A-DOT, acronym chart bros that look at like, you know, frequency vibrations in terms of route efficiency and quarterback production, whatever kind of made up crap they want to come up

with this week. They want him to throw into triple coverage down the field and say, well, at least he's throwing downfield, even if it's into triple coverage. Like, no, like you take what the defense gives you, but defenses are trying to take away the deep stuff. So I talked to a couple of wide receivers. And the one thing they told me is we have a lot of man beaters, but we're not getting a lot of man coverage.

but I think how you can use Marvin Mims more outside of just putting him in the backfield. You know, you can use him that way. That's great. I think he's effective there. But why not throw the quick stops to him, right? Like run a quick hitch, run a snag concept, especially if you're getting off-covered zone. They're playing quarters coverage. That corner's playing off.

Have Marvin sit. Get him four or five yards. Let him catch the ball quick. Maybe make a move and make guys miss, like get him the ball in space to do what he does well as a returner. To me, that's what I think we could see. But in terms of the snap counts, like, you know, when Marvin is on there, you got to find a way to go to him. Pat Bryant has taken over the role as wide receiver two here behind Cortland Sutton based on snap counts and overall targets over the course of the last handful of weeks. Yeah, that's exactly where I was going to go, as I do think it's Pat Bryant, not in a bad way, but they're wanting to get him more involved.

So I think that's why you've seen some lesser production from Marvin Mims. And Sarah, like I'm not trying to directly compare him to this guy because if he keeps playing the way that he's playing, I think he's going to the Hall of Fame. But he has a similar skill set to that of Puka Nakua, right? Like shifty over the middle can, you know, get him in open space, as Cody kind of alluded to and, you know, let him go for the yak, the yards after the catch. That's the type of guy they have in Marvin Mims. And I want to see them use them more. But again, they keep winning games. So like it's hard to complain.

But I think that dynamic is like, like we love the Cortland Sutton, you know, slant right over the middle. A few weeks ago, I said that I thought Troy Franklin had an argument to be the Broncos's number one ride receiver. He's kind of not been as involved the last few weeks. So it's kind of a by committee approach for this Broncos passing attack. And look, I understand that R.J. Harvey was pretty good against the Raiders. But if they want to, you know, put the pressure on the Packers in this game, it's going to take everybody, I think, starting with Marvin Mims, but more Cortland Sutton, more Troy Franklin and R.J. Harvey as well.

It really is. It's going to take the whole village of these guys, right? I mean, these young playmakers kind of stepping up week after week for the Broncos. And it's kind of nice in a way that we have yet to see all this stuff fully unlock right. I mean, I know that we would have preferred to have seen it all throughout the year. We've seen certain things in spurts or we've seen it in kind of short windows of time. We've seen these guys make one play here, one play there. But I kind of get excited about the idea that, okay, we, we recognized something wrong. The crazy thing would be to do nothing about it or to say, you know, that everything is fine. But the fact that Sean Payton is coming out and giving away certain strategy, which he never does, right? I mean, he's, he's, he's, he's, he's, he's, he's, he's, he's, he's, he's, deliberately saying we are going to get him the ball right so when he says that i think you can take that to the bank and you know last year it it was the trade deadline right let marvin cook let marvin eat free marvin mims last year it was the trade deadline where they didn't make any moves and you felt

like they shifted that mindset internally saying hey we didn't go get anybody so we're going to finally use marvin like that's kind of my hope for right now is that they they've been getting by in the first however many games of this season, you know, doing the things that they want to do, doing it the way they want to do them, you know, utilizing Pat Bryant, getting, we're going to feed Troy Franklin, no matter what happens, you know, we're going to feed Cortland Sutton in this game. We're going to get J.K. Dobbins' drives. We're going to get Harvey.

It's one guy after another, right? But this Broncos team is not the 2013 Broncos where five different guys are going to end the year with 10 total touchdowns or more, right? This is not that kind of a team where, hey, Peyton Manning's running point and he's just getting the ball to everybody. You can throw it 50 times a game. You can run it 25 because you have that many plays. It's not that kind of a team. So on a week-to-week basis, you feel like Pat Bryant could be the guy this week.

Oh, it could be Evan Ingram like it was against the commanders this week. It could be Cortland Sutton like it was against the Chiefs this week. And this week against the Packers, it could be Marvin Mims. Just because we haven't seen it up to this point doesn't mean that. it can't be going forward. I agree with everything you said. And again, I think winning Cures All, right? So I think the reason this isn't a bigger conversation is because they're on a 10-game win streak.

And they are currently-go ahead, Nick. Can I jump in for just a second? Yes. Say, why can it not be that way? Right. Why put restraints on this team offensively? And I take it back to when I was a kid and I used to watch the Dallas Cowboys or the San Francisco 49ers. They had multiple guys who had multiple targets that had at least eight to

10 touchdowns. And we talk about ball distribution. When we look at the Broncos, we say, okay, well, Bo has thrown to like 12 different guys. But when we look at the targets of those guys, some guys have four, there's two, there's five. And last game, I mean, the targets as far as that's concerned, Colin Sutton had 10 targets. The next guy was the running back. And R.J. Harvey with six targets. So for me, I do feel as though there is room to make sure that there is equal ball distribution, not just by saying, well, we did throw to this guy. We did throw this guy as well. But yeah, five here, five there. Make sure there's balanced because from a defensive standpoint, that makes it difficult for a defensive coordinator to figure out, well,

who in the hell are we going to stop this week? And I know every week there's a different person kind of leading in the clubhouse as far as receptions, you know, majority of the time is Troy Franklin. But when you look at red zone targets, Troy Franklin has 15. Colin Sutton has nine. To me, let's get that total up with so many different guys. So now it's stressing the safety to hell out. I don't know what side to lean to, right?

That is what you want to present to a defense, especially if the Broncos are to do what we hope they do, which is to get to San Francisco, because if you only have these dink and dunk type of philosophies with a couple of players, you're going to make it easier to defend your offense. Yeah, Sarah, feel free to respond. Yeah, I think when you look at this offense overall, it's kind of a mini version of that, right? I mean, what we talked about with that 2013 group, it was happening every single week where the ball distribution was putting stress on defenses.

Hey, I don't know who to lean to, like you said, is it Decker? Is it Thomas? Is it Walker? Is it Julius? Is it who? No, Sean, going to get the ball. I mean, I was at a game in Kansas City where Eric Decker had three touchdowns. And I don't even think he was the best player on the field that day. No Sean Moreno, Monta, Ball had a dominant game that week. So you have all these different guys, but you look at the total yards from scrimmage for the Broncos this year, guys.

They have one, two, three, four, five, six, seven different players with over 300 yards from scrimmage this season. And I'm not saying that's like elite or anything. thing. But what I am saying is that that's seven different guys to on a given week, you can go out there and you could say, hey, where do we, who are we covering on this play? What are they going to do on this play? Who are they going to be locking in on this game? So I just think that a lot of times this stuff, maybe it gets overblown in the micro, but when you look at the macro, I mean, this team's averaging 24 points a game. Like, that's going to win you most games in the NFL offensively. So I know that the ball distribution hasn't been awesome in terms of what we would have

ideally hope to see fantasy wise. But man, I think the bigger picture is showing us that it's kind of coming together in a lot of different ways. I think it's fair. And like I've said before, I think it might just be good enough for this year, right? Like the NFL is very strange this season. Like there's a lot of parody across the board.

And, you know, what we've done in the past might not just be the case this year. So let's at a quick break. When we come back, I'm happy Sarah brought up the 2013 team because I'm going to present something to you guys. That's not good or bad. And I want to get your opinion on this with respect to how the Broncos finish the season.

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So be sure to check out our friends over at MintMobil and let them know about Lockedon Broncos Central. Did I do that all right, Cody? That was a little bit. That was great, man. I just takes me back to the time as a player and a team captain where I'd always do the pregame speech or the post game speech. and I'd mention things like accountability, like big words like that, man. You did great. A quick side note before we get back to the Broncos,

how insane is it? And I know that desperate times call for desperate measures. How about freaking Philip Rivers coming out of retirement at the age of 44 to play quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts, man? I'm so hyped up for that. Like, obviously, I don't want that leverage penalty to affect the Broncos whatsoever. I don't think they will at this point. No, but they're done. They're not going to win a single game the rest of the season.

You don't believe in Philip? No. 44-year-old Philip Rivers. Oh, I mean, oh, it's nostalgia. Philip Rivers is walking through that door. He's got to face the Houston Texans. He's got to face, you know, their final four games are arguably, in my opinion, the toughest stretch remaining for any NFL team.

Yeah, it would have been brutal. Tees and peas there, Philip Rivers. Better hope you better ice up, son. Yeah, it would have been brutal even if they had a healthy Daniel Jones. But I don't know, I'm a nostalgia guy. When I saw that, I got pretty pumped up. So, you know, I'm not necessarily rooting for the colds. because I don't want it to affect the Broncos, but, you know, I'm always a sucker for a good story.

We'll see how it shakes out. Okay, getting back to the Broncos, we texted a little bit about this this morning. You brought up 2013, Sarah. That Broncos team, I believe, wrote an 11-game win streak into the playoffs. And we all know how that season went with, you know, the Baltimore Ravens and Rahim Morris and the Ravens go on to win the Super Bowl. That was 2012. Or 2012, excuse me.

But it was 2013 when the playoffs were occurring. I see what you did there. I hate how they do that. Like baseball, it's so great because it's just the one year because they don't play over with the overlap there. But point being, so the Broncos of that season, double-digit win streak going into the playoffs, bow out early in disappointment.

1997, 1998, and the Super Bowl 50 squad, the one commonality between all three of those teams. They all went on a two-game losing streak in the month of December. And all three of those teams went on to win the Super Bowl. Now, look, I know the Broncos schedule is very, very tough. Packers, Jaguars, Chiefs, and Chargers. You really, I don't think, can afford to lose two games if you want to get that one seed. But I don't think a loss might be the worst thing for this Broncos team.

What do we make of the idea that the other three Super Bowl champion teams have lost two in a row in December and gone on to win the championship? Is that just juju magic or do we put any stock into this? I'll go with you, Sarah. You know, that's a great question. I think that, you know, every team has different stories, right? Every team has different reasons why maybe they locked in at exactly the right time or they started to get hot at exactly the right time. I still, you make me think about that 2012 Broncos team.

Now I'm starting to get nostalgic as well, right? I mean, the 2012, the 2005 and the J. Cutler led Broncos, those are all my Broncos teams that I, you know, have lost sleepover because those are my favorite teams. Like those were the best teams that didn't win at all in it that pains me inside. But you know what? I think that there is something to it because that 2015 team, remember they lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers. I was just talking about this with a couple other people. 2015 Broncos, they lost and they should have beaten the Pittsburgh Steelers

in the regular season with Brock Osweiler. He played maybe the best game that he ever ended up playing as a pro in that game. And you're sitting there thinking, dang, like, there's no way that Broncos blow this one. And then the Steelers happen. And from that point on, they did not lose a game. all the way through to Super Bowl 50. So to your point, I mean, is it a wake-up call like that, you know, that you look at it and you say, okay, hey, here in December, you know, we didn't necessarily play our best game or

we blew it late. Like, was that the wake-up call that we needed? But I think you got to be careful because that can also send you maybe into a bit of a tailspin. Yeah, I think it's fair. Nick, what do you think about this concept of two straight losses in December with the three previous championship teams? Well, for me, I mean, the past is the past. and you can learn something from the past,

but you don't allow that to linger. And for me, it's just like, you just got to get out there and win. I mean, you play all season long to get that number one C and just having a concept like, well, you know what, based on the past, maybe if the team lost a couple of games, it would kind of, kind of get them fired up.

No, I, eh, F that. You go out, then you win the end. Because I'm going to tell you, I was a part of a Broncos team, and we lost to the Pittsburgh Steeleers. And it was an 05 season, but that game was 06. And I still haven't gotten over that, right?

That's me. You and me both. Yes, it still lingers every year during the playoffs. I wish I can say that I can erase it from my mind, but I can't. So the idea is when you have a chance to play on Sunday, no matter whenever it is, regular season or postseason, you go out and win. And listen, man, that's the bonus for doing well during the regular season. and capturing that first round by is that that's a reward for what you did throughout the season.

And it gives you an opportunity to watch all the other teams. Yes, slows you down as far as momentum is concerned, but you get healthier. You get a chance to figure out, okay, well, we're going to self-scout. But we're also going to scout these other teams to make sure that we are prepared for the next team we're going to face. So I'm all about the Broncos winning every stinking game that's in front of them. because right now that first round by is very important, especially how crazy the NFL has been this season. Cody, I will say this.

I think, you know, for example, we're talking about the past. You know, if my mother drank a Mountain Dew instead of a vodka martini, I wouldn't be here, right? So you can't go back, can't change it, things like that. But I will say this, the 2015 team, what we learned from them, watching them that season, a lot of their games, most of their games were one score,

games, right? They were tight. They needed to find a way to gut it out. The offense wasn't always pretty. The defense was strong. Special teams was pretty good there. That, in my opinion, I think, helped the Broncos in the playoffs more than anything is, hey, we've been in these close games. We know what we have to do. We've been tested. Whereas some teams, like I'd say that 2013 Broncos team that was blowing everybody out, they weren't in a lot of close games necessarily, right? But then the moment they got into like a dog fight with the Seahawks early on, granted, when you have a snap go every quarterback's head and you start off the game down to nothing. It doesn't help, but momentum is a real thing.

I believe in that. I think that this team with their weak-to-week mentality, they're in a good spot here. Now, earlier, people are watching the show. You saw my whiteboard that I wrote. First round buys are bad. I understand the benefit to it. That 2012 team did not benefit from that, right?

You had a week to get healthy, prepare extra, and then Joe Flacco and then they come in and they put up 30 plus points and went on a mile high miracle against you. I've always believed in the playoffs. Continuing to play is probably what's better for you. But that's why I like the idea of two built-in buys in the actual NFL season so you can get ready for the playoffs there. But that's a different conversation for a different day.

First round buys are bad. That's a take. How's that worked up for Kansas City? I mean, fine. But also there were other teams. More than fine. Tennessee, was that like six, seven years ago when they were good. Tennessee at the first round buy got bounced.

I mean, the NFC team that year, first round by, they got bounced in that, in that division. I just think that there's something attributed to continuing to play. Like for the Broncos, you know, when they won a Super Bowl, they're a wildcar team. They get playing. You keep playing. You keep winning versus sometimes taking a week off. How do the Broncos come out of the buy this year? Just want to say that.

I mean, they won, but they didn't look great doing it. It was sluggish in all accounts. So I'm of the mindset of keep playing because that's what's going to keep you going. You're going to keep playing through February. anyways. I think that's fair. And I kind of look at it from two schools of thought. I think the first and foremost, I agree with, I think with what Nick was saying is one seat over everything right now. Yeah, that's their goal. Assuming the Patriots went out, you know, the Broncos would have to match that. Now, the flip side of that is I don't think the Patriots are

winning out. I think they're going to drop out of these two games against the Buffalo Bills this weekend or the Baltimore Ravens the following weekend. You disagree with that, Cody? Wait, who are you talking about their Patriots? I thought you're talking about Denver. Yeah, no, I think they'll drop one. Yeah. Well, and so that's where I'm like, it's hard for me to say like Denver can afford a loss. Because I actually, I'm sympathetic to what you're saying about like let the good times roll. But like let's say the Patriots do drop a game. It gives the Broncos also the ability to drop a game and be okay with respect to the one seat with the buy and whatnot. I actually think a loss might not be the worst thing for this Broncos team. And I know that's a crazy thing to say I'm not rooting for them to lose. But I think, you know, with how they've won some of these games, right, back and into those wins against the giant.

the Jets, the Texans, the Raiders, you know, some of these other matchups as well. It might not be a bad thing, Nick, for them to come back down to Earth a little bit and then get back up for the final stretch. I don't get this whole comeback down to Earth thing. I don't get it. Humble pie. No, listen. Oh, humble pie? I'm just saying, you know, sometimes you get a little tight, especially because there's all this pressure with winning.

These guys don't. But sometimes you, yeah, I agree with you on that. but like I would think that a loss, you come back better from that loss, I guess is the point that I'm trying to make. I would like this Broncos team with some extra teeth. No, I don't want any losses at all, man. I will never be a fan of that philosophy.

The ideas that you have to consider the idea, where are these other teams? You have other teams chasing. You don't want to lose a game. And then now it's like, well, because you lost that game, that now affects your positioning as far as the playoffs concerned. And more importantly, the number one seed, go out there, put your best foot forward and win.

So that way, we're not getting to these weird type of scenarios because right now, I mean, the Broncos with the fact that they defeated their Las Vegas Raiders, not once but twice, to me, they already have that nod over the Patriots anyway, right? So don't lose a game. We don't want that mentality to seep in. It's like, okay, you know what? You have a couple of games remaining. And you can lose one of those games.

No, the idea is to win out and you continue to put the pressure on the New England Patriots to be perfect with the remaining of the games in the season. No, and I agree with that. Again, I'm not rooting for the Broncos to lose. I don't want the Broncos to lose. But you think it should be, it would be good if they did. I'm saying there could be some benefits if they did. What benefits? No, I'm just saying, man, get riled up.

You know, sometimes you can get complacent with the winning. Look, I'm not saying that's the case. with this Broncos team. I'm not. I mean, you're telling me, Nick, you've never played in your entire career where you've lost a game and because of that loss, you've come out the next game better. That's never happened to you. Well, yeah, that's happened, but we didn't go into it, say, you know what, if we lose this game, no, no, no, you'll hurt him the next one. Right. No, I agree with that completely. I'm not saying that's the way that Broncos should think. But if they were to lose a game, is the point that I'm making is there might be some trickle benefits that come from that. Again,

I want the Broncos to win out. I think it's one seat over everything. And I'm just trying to play devil's advocate here. John Dayton hates losing. Yeah, he hates losing more than he likes winning. That was his big theme. Same with both. Bow was the same way. When you got dudes like that, and as you even say, the dudes in the locker room defensive,

we've got dudes who are cut from that type of cloth, man, you don't worry about like, ah, like if they lose, like how are they going to respond? You know they're going to respond. But I also think we know they're going to respond when they're trying to win. I think we've seen that from this team this year. Yeah, no, I think, again, I agree with you guys. I think it's one seat. It's win all the games and whatnot.

I'm just saying, you know, if they want. where to lose. I'm curious how they respond. So, okay, so with that being said, of the remaining games, what game would you be encouraged to say, okay, the Broncos will lose this game and then the next game's after this? Oh, man, they're about to give people to business. Which game? Well, I'll flip it. I think the most loseable game on the schedule is this one this week. I think the Green Bay matchup is their toughest game remaining, right? I feel pretty good about their chances against Jacksonville. The chiefs are in a very, very weird place. And look, the charges have been a thorn on their side as well. But if that game means something for the Broncos at home,

I like their chances. So, you know, and we'll kind of get into this in the next segment after the break is I think that this is the toughest game remaining on the Bronco schedule. Like, if I had to project a loss, again, I want them to win them all. I think it would come this week. That's kind of where I'm at. But that's a real mentality, man. Nope. Hey, you know, it's a little sports talk radio mentality. But a little devil's advocate, a little bit of this, a little bit of that. So, no, let's hit a quick break when we come back. We'll continue along with the conversation. We'll give our for what the Broncos record will be over these final four games of the season and looking ahead to what should be an epic matchup this weekend against the remade Packers.

All that more, we come back right here on your Locked on Broncos Squatchet. All right, welcome on back into the program. Enilo Piro, Cody, Rourke, Sarah Bedinger, and Nick Ferguson. Hope everyone is doing well out there in Broncos country. If you're watching on YouTube, hit that like button, smash that subscribe button. And if you're on the audio feed, we love you too. If you ever want to watch us, though, you can come on over to the Lockdown Broncos Squat. watch or to the lockdown Broncos YouTube channel.

Excuse me. Okay. I definitely lit the candle there with that previous conversation. So that was fun. No, it was actually good. Again, I think we're all, we all want the Broncos to win out. I think it's easier said than done to a certain extent. I think they've been, you know, one of the better, if not the best team, you know,

at times throughout the course of the NFL this season. And where we kind of started the show, I'll kind of go back to that. Like, I'm happy to have this Raiders game over and done with because I think this final four-game stretch, Cody. We're going to learn a lot about this Denver Broncos team. I know we already know a lot about them with respect to their resiliency and they're come from behind wins and, you know, their thick skin when it comes to playing in close games.

But you have essentially four games against playoff caliber teams. And even if you don't include Kansas City in that category, you're still talking about the best NFL football team over the last half decade or so with Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelsey. So this is where I think we learn a lot about the makeup of this Broncos team, Cody. I mean, I think we already know what the makeup. what this team is. I mean, this is a tough stretch. Don't get me wrong. I think they've already gone through their toughest stretch of the schedule. And to me, before the season, I said it's going to be the start

of that Monday night game against the Cincinnati Bengals. And you got to go to Philly. Then you got to go to London to play the Jets. You got to come back to play the Giants, the Cowboys, so on and so forth. Then you end before your by week, you go and face the Chiefs. Like I have always been on the stand saying that is the toughest, if we look at the schedule, that's the toughest stretch. Now, I think this one, certainly where you look at where the Packers, the Jaguars, and even where the chargers are at right now, this is going to be a test for them. But the benefit is you get three home games out of your four remaining games here. I think we've seen this from the Broncos.

I think we've seen them rise to the occasion when called upon against some of the teams that they face this season. When they face some adversity, they faced a tough number of games they had to play in a certain amount of days. They responded well to that. and it may not have always looked pretty, but you know what we measure at the end of the day. It's all about a W. And I think right now the Broncos, you win on Sunday, you clinch a playoff spot, right?

That's one of their goals. Now, obviously, you look at the remaining schedule after that, and you have to hope that the Chargers drop a game because I think, realistically speaking, going into that week 18 game against the Chargers for the Broncos, you want that to be a Jarrett Stidham game. You want that to be where Jarrett is starting, and the Broncos starters are getting a little bit of a reprieve in a sense.

Maybe you play a quarter, or so with the starters, treat it like a preseason game because you've already won the division. You already clinched the playoff spot. The goal is now to get there entirely. So that's my thing. So for me, my prediction in these final four games, they're going to go four and oh. They're going to go four and oh, and they're going to finish the regular season 15 and two. I think that this team is built for it.

I do think that the Chiefs game is going to be tough on paper just because it's coming a few days after you play a physical AFC matchup against a Jaguars team that is kind of red hot right now. That would have to be the best record in Broncos franchise history, right? 15 and 2. I'm not sure they remember. I'm just thinking off the top of my head. I mean, the manning teams didn't have that good up a run. And I understand 13 and 3, 14 and 2. I don't know if they're 14 and 2. I can't remember off the top of my head. Yeah, but I mean, point being like, it'd be historic, you know, or close to historic if the Broncos were to win out these final four games. And I think it'd be very, very impressive if they were. And again, I think they're

going to win a majority of these games. I'll go last. Crazy to think that if they do, they were a leverage call and a Justin Herbert miracle throw away from an undefeated season in the regular season. It's crazy to think. I mean, think about that going into the playoffs on a 14 game win streak. Great. If you would have told me that before the year, I'd be like, huh? Like, no way, right? But that's that's very much in the realm of possibility. Sarah, where are you going here?

Yeah, my whiteboard is too big to hold up, guys, but 18 and 2 until we ain't. I'll write it down. I'll hold it up while somebody else is talking. because I'll have to get out of the way. Literally, it's that big. But look, 18 and 2 until we ain't, that's what I'm saying, right? You get three of these next four regular season games at home. Then you host throughout the playoffs.

That's your goal right now. And the Broncos obviously, they could, I feel like they can, they can handle the buy week, right? I know that we talked about they didn't look good against the commanders coming out of the buy. But at the same time, that little mini buy that they had after the Raiders game as well seemed to do wonders for the team refocusing. And I know to Anilos point, you'd rather obviously win these close, tight games than lose any of them. But can we not agree that they came back way more focused after that Raiders game, especially offensively? And Sean Payton points back to that as a kind of flag in the ground game of saying, hey, our plan was not good for that game. And it showed

on the field. They did not have a good plan. They didn't expect what Patrick Graham of the Raiders was going to bring to the table in that game. They looked sloppy out there. They looked disenged. out there. They looked like a team that had been on a winning streak hangover. And so to the point, obviously you want to win those games as ugly as they may be, but also the refocus element of that, I think is a big, big deal. And so that's, once again, the commander's game. You win on a batted down two point conversion. You come back the next week. And I don't care what you guys say. You absolutely freaking dog walked the Raiders and average more points per drive than the number one, two or three offense in the NFL have done all season long.

So you came out the next week refocused after near disaster. The Broncos, they're not just battle tested. I think they can win any way that any team wants to play them. And that's what makes them the most dangerous team in the playoffs. They're not just, oh, well, they're so explosive on offense, but they got these flaws on defense. Oh, they're so tight on defense, but their offense is a question mark. Or like the Texans, man, those guys are smothering defensively, but they can't run the

ball for crap. and they needed Andy Reid to go for two fourth downs to escape with that win. All of a sudden, I've got Texans fans in my mention saying, hey, can't wait to see the Broncos fraud alert later this year. I'm like, shut your mouth right now. You lost to the Broncos on your field and gave up a 10 point lead. The Broncos can come back from double digit deficits. They can run all over you.

They can throw for over 300. They can sack you nine, 10 times in a game. They can do anything that you want. Return touchdowns. doesn't matter. Game winning field goals doesn't matter. The Broncos, they're the best team in the NFL right now, and they're going to prove it

over these next seven, eight weeks. Should we just end the show there? That was a strong takes from Sarah. That was great. I'm fired up, Sarah. I'm ready to run through a brick wall right now. Let's go. No, I'm with you guys, man. I am pumped up for it. I think I've been waiting for this moment, right? Like, especially like the Raiders game was cool, but like

these games, I'm just so pumped up for. The playoffs are going to be so interesting. I think The Broncos have as good a chance, the best chance, potentially the AFC to go out there and run the table and, you know, go out there. What a championship. 18 and 2 until we ain't. I love it, Sarah. I love it. Nick, talk to me, brother.

All right. So I have the Broncos. If you can see this, this is three and one down a stretch. And I'll say this, the game Sunday is going to be a tough game. I mean, the Broncos put points up on Patrick Graham's defense, but they still kind of struggle because. they didn't put up multiple points or double-digit points throughout the game. And when I look at the Green Bay Packers defensively, they have a better personnel group up front and then the secondary than the Raiders have.

So that's going to be a tough game for the Broncos on Sunday. Then when you look at the next game, you got, what is it, Jacksonville, you got Kansas City, and you have the charges. See, that Jacksonville game, even though they're playing decent, their problem is that they don't have enough skill players to help out Trevor. Lawrence. And when you face that off against the Broncos defense, that's going to present some issues. Now, they run the ball well with Travis E.TN. So the Broncos would have to continue with that, but that means you add an extra guy inside the box. So they're not going to win one-on-one

matchups outside. So that's a loss for the Jags. And then Kansas City, at that point, the nail is going to be in the coffin. There's nothing to really play for. And then Andy Reid is like, well, why am I going to sacrifice, you know, Patrick Mahalo? in a game that doesn't mean anything. So now you go to, I believe, their backup is Gardner Minshu. And we've seen Minshu before. There's not going to be any Menshu magic on Christmas. So they're going to take an L.

and then you round out the season with the charges. Now, the charges are getting healthy as far as the running backs are concerned. Bidel is still a threat. Amarian Hampton, he will be back. But it's still what's the problem with the charges? They have issues across their offensive line. And that's not going to stop the Broncos. for us in that last game in that first game.

Well, Herbert did enough to just buy himself some time and throw the ball down the field. But now, once again, you're beat up across your offensive line, just like Kansas City. So for me, it is a three and one to finish out the last four games of the season. I thought I was going to have to be the only one that gave out three and one, you know, and I was going to do it solely to break the, you know, when the ESPN, everyone picks one team to win. It tends to not go that way. It's interesting for me because I think the loss, if I'm just playing hypothetical here, like if that Chargers game doesn't mean anything, right, is it kind of like Broncos

Chiefs in the final week of last season where the Broncos, to Cody's point, play Stidham, and like the game doesn't mean anything. Maybe they lose that way. You know, I think they're going to beat Jacksonville. We'll see. I agree with you, Nick. I think the nail will be in the coffin for Kansas City. But if there's any chance, you know, on Christmas in Kansas City back against the wall,

we'll see how that game goes. And I like the Broncos against the Packers this week. man. And I don't know if it's just because I thought the home underdog line. And I know that's not, you know, fuel that I don't think Sean Payton's going to put on the bulletin board necessarily. But I like the Broncos chances against Green Bay. I'm just not sold on Jordan Love myself. So like I'm not, I guess I'm copping out a little bit by saying I'm not sure which game they're going to lose. Maybe if I had to lean it would be that final game of the season against the Chargers, assuming the one seat, assuming the division's all locked up. But we shall see, man.

I mean, either way, this is a team that's going to be strong going to the playoffs, Cody. Yeah, look, the AFC West is right here for the Broncos to take advantage. They can clinch a playoff spot this week with the win against Green Bay, but I look at the Chargers schedule. They arguably, in my opinion, have a tougher schedule to close out the season than I think the Broncos do. Now, granted, there's some crossover, right? Denver still plays KC and the Chargers one time. But look at the Chargers' next four games here. They've got three road games, one home game. They don't particularly play well on the road for the most part. At Kansas city at Dallas in back-to-back games, home versus the Houston, Texas, and then at the Denver

Broncos. Justin Herbert, I mean, I was watching the Philadelphia Eagles Chargers Monday night game, and I was like, look, Justin Herbert's making some plays here and there. This Charter's team doesn't have it offensively. That offensive line is a sieve anybody and everybody can run through it. I just think that them, especially have to face Houston. Oh, that doesn't bode well for them. I think that Denver will have the division locked up by Christmas Day. I think they get get one step closer by winning here on Sunday. I think it's well taken. I think it's well taken.

And as we kind of wind down on the show, I'll kind of give you my prediction for this Packers game coming up this weekend. If you guys want to get the whiteboards out and do the same, feel free. I think the Broncos are going to win this one, 23 to 20. I think it's going to be a close game all throughout. I'm thinking a Will Lutz walk off field goal. I'm sensing some frustration from Broncos fans over, you know, maybe how the offense plays and spurts throughout the course of this game because of

Michael Parsons. but when the Broncos are at home, man, I'm taking them against any single team. And that's just kind of where I'm at right now. You know, Mahomes, we've seen that happen. You know, we'll see what happens with the Chargers. I just think the Broncos at home, they have probably the strongest home field advantage in the NFL right now. And again, I'm just not sold on Jordan Love. I think we've seen Jordan Love play really, really good in some spots and not so good in some other spots.

And I just think the Broncos defense will put him in a world of hurt in this game. So I've got the Broncos winning this one 23 to 20, like I said. said, Will Lutz walk off fuel? That's my prediction. Cody, where are you going to go here? I got 1713 Broncos win this one. I think the defense will hold up. I think there are going to be some plays that obviously get made against Denver's defense,

but I think they buckle down in key situations. I just think that this is going to be a 1713 slug fest. And I think it'll be more entertaining than most people might think. And I think the Broncos are going to look better than most people think. So I'm going to go with that. I like it. I like it. Sarah?

Yeah, I think that the Packers. are going to get got this weekend. I do. I think that they're coming to Denver. Obviously, you know, I never predict the Broncos to lose games. So this year on my Broncos picks, I am, what, 11 and 2 at this point. So just straight up picking the winner of the game, like the Broncos, I think, are going to win this game in terms of the final score. Look, it's going to come down to, remember, you guys talk about the front seven of this Packers team. I would say, I don't think Micah Parsons is all that much better than Max Crosby, as an all-around. player and the Packers just lost one of their best defensive lineman Devante Wyatt who was having

an incredible season for them and their depth on the defensive line is not good and their secondary I hate to say it is not good they have some players they have some guys at the safety position I mean Evan Williams he can play keishon nixon just made a great game winning interception for them but that secondary has been got this season they made horrible moves bringing in Nate Hobbs letting go of Eric Stokes, getting rid of Jaya Alexander, like their secondary was gutted at the cornerback position and their defensive line, their defensive front dealing with injuries. So I'm just, I'm just putting it out there that it's going to require the Broncos reverting to old habits to lose this game, turning the ball over, making dumb mistakes, bad penalties deep down the field

when the Packers do attack that way. I think that's the way the Packers win this game, if they're going to do it, is if the Broncos are making a bunch of mistakes. and I just don't think that's going to happen. I like it. Nick, go ahead and, you know, be the voice of reason, if you may. Well, I want to say I'm the voice of reason, but I'm just trying to be realistic about the situation. And obviously, it can change throughout the game because you never know what's going to happen. So my score is 2420 in favor of the Packers. And the reason I elected to go in that direction because I look at what the Packers can do offensively.

that the Broncos haven't shown consistently that they can do. And that is attack vertically down the field and run the ball. I mean, Sean Payton said it himself, and Cody brought it up. I think Cody, you brought this up. Well, the Broncos wanted to attack down the field with deep shots, but Patrick Graham's defense kind of took it away, so they had to settle for the short and intermediate route. And I can tell you, it's very difficult to force when you're offense,

and you're trying to move the ball down the field, methodically, that's very difficult because now you're talking about can you convert third down and can you do it at a high level? We saw the Broncos run the ball on first down to keep them in short and manageable plays where now Sean Payton could go in his bag and decide, okay, well, do I want to run here or do I want to pass here? So this can't not be a game where we see Bo Nicks throwing for 45 times a game. And I don't know Sarah said, well, you know, the Packers are missing one of the better defensive linemen, but when you are giving that pass rush by the Packers,

more opportunities because you are throwing the ball more than you're running the ball. Guess what? Bow is now on the move a lot. And I know that the Packers don't have the best secondary, but their secondary is a whole lot better than what they faced last week. So with that being said, my score is 2420 in favor of the Packers. I love it. I love it.

We'll see how it shakes out coming up here on Sunday. afternoon. Cody, myself and Sarah all have the Broncos winning. Nick has the Broncos losing, but we're all in agreement that the Broncos will be better than 500 over this final four game stretch of the regular season. Packers, Jaguars, Chiefs, Chargers. And then it's buckle up for playoff time, ladies and gentlemen. So good stuff today, fellas. As always, really appreciate everyone in Broncos country for giving us a listen, making us your first listen of the day. If you're watching on YouTube, do us that favor on your way out the door. Hit that like on smash that subscribe button really, really helps us out here on the channel.

Broncos Packers coming up on Sunday will be a good one. We'll talk to you guys after the game as well. But until then, for Cody Rourke, Sarah Beninger and Nick Ferguson, I am Anilo Piro, another episode of the Lockdown Broncos Squad Show in the books. Have a good rest of your week, fellow, everyone, and we'll talk to you guys on Sunday evening.